The Caves of Androzani: Part One

The Doctor and Peri get involved with drug running after landing on the twin planet of Androzani Minor and getting arrested as gun runners and targeted for execution. Not before Peri stumbles into some highly toxic and lethal plant life.

Storyline

After landing on the planet Androzani Minor, the Doctor and Peri develop lethal spectrox toxaemia poisoning. As the two search for a cure before it is too late, they become enmeshed in a decades-old feud between the disfigured roboticist Sharaz Jek and businessman Morgus. Jek falls in love with Peri, but the situation only degenerates when the girl refuses his affections. Between threats from mire beasts and gun runners, it quickly becomes apparent that the Doctor will never find a cure in time to save both himself and his companion. Written by
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Did You Know?

Trivia

This was voted by fans as the second greatest Doctor Who (1963) serial in Outpost Gallifrey's poll in 2003 to celebrate 40 years of the series. It was beaten to first place on that occasion by another Robert Holmes story, Doctor Who: The Talons of Weng-Chiang: Part One (1977). In 2009, The Caves of Androzani was voted the greatest story ever in a poll by Doctor Who Magazine out of 200 episodes, even beating episodes of the much lauded and more expensive revival Doctor Who (2005). See more »

Goofs

In the first episode of "The Caves of Androzani", when Peri, falls off screen, the mattress she lands on causes her to bounce back into the shot briefly. See more »

Quotes

The Doctor:
[the Doctor and Peri are waiting in a prison cell to be executed]
I'm sorry I got you in to this Peri.
Peri:
It's alright. It's not your fault. I mean it's as much my fault as it is yours.
The Doctor:
Yes. Should never have followed those tracks. Curiosity's always been my downfall.
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Frequently Asked Questions

User Reviews

"The Caves of Androzani" is a "Doctor Who" serial featuring Peter Davison as the Doctor. The story concerns two neighboring planets, Androzani Minor and Androzani Major. Major is a center of governmental operations, but Minor contains a valuable resource. On Minor there is a war between government and resistance resources that is at a lingering stalemate. The situation is altered when the Doctor and companion Peri land in the TARDIS on Minor.

Peter Davison is in top form as the Doctor, playing the character as knowledgeable with occasional touches of sarcasm. Admittedly I always thought Peri was never an especially good companion for the Doctor. She gets better as the serial progresses, but too often whines, screams or squeals. I would say that her character is the only major detractor of the serial. John Normington is memorable as the cold, brooding capitalist that pulls the strings on Androzani Major. Christopher Gable is also notable as the enigmatic resistance leader Sharaz Jek, a masked character surely inspired by the Phantom of the Opera.

The sets for the dark caves of Androzani are well-made and the effects for space travel are amazingly seamless. The serial has many elements that make it an excellent one: political machinations, gunrunners, androids, minor military conflicts, duplicity, ambiguity and plot twists. Even the brief appearances by a rubber monster that terrorizes random British actors are decent. This is definitely a serial worth seeing for those that enjoy serials from the Peter Davison years.

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